Compliments & Complaints Annual Report 2022 to 2023

The ASC statutory complaints process is a one stage process that encourages local resolution to resolve issues within 48 hours. The complaints process usually begins once the Concern Stage has been exhausted.

The complaint numbers have increased, whilst the concerns resolved informally have decreased. This is due to the increased volume of complaints which relate to funding decisions (e.g., previous self-funding care home residents who wish to remain in a more expensive placement), which are more appropriate to be considered through formal processes.

The graph above shows 73 ASC statutory complaints were received during the year which is more than 2021/22 when there were 49 were dealt with. The pre-complaint stage is called the Concern Stage, during which, if agreed with the complainant, the service area has 48 hours to resolve issues informally. During the year we dealt with 87 concerns compared with 105 for the previous year.

Whilst the statutory timescale allows up to six months to issue a final response to the complaint, the Council has set a local standard of 28 calendar days during which time most complaints are expected to be resolved.

The average response time for 2022/23 was 26 days compared to 28 days in 2021/22.